Azsure Bailey's slogan "Memories fade," captures her artistic works in a unique and creative way.

Originally from Indianapolis, Ms. Bailey was raised off of Guilford Avenue and went to IPS #59 and #70. As a single mom, she works at night for a children's home. In the day, she transitions from non-profit employee to single mother of three and artist of unique talent.

Ms. Bailey's three lines of art are displayed at her website, www.thebelly-button.com, which also describes her focus as an artist and the art she creates. She can be reached at aszure.bailey@yahoo.com and at 603-9711.

Her first line is the belly casting. A pregnancy belly cast is a casting made of an expecting mother. Instead of a flat 2D image from a photo, a pregnancy belly cast captures the exciting transformation a woman undergoes in full three dimensions.

Her second line is for sick children or for kids who need inspiration, called the "Look at You Mirror." These mirrors are wrapped in a pharmacy RX bag. When the child opens their prescription, it is a mirror telling them they are beautiful or wonderful.

Her third line is inspirational art. For children's art, she makes expressions or artistic color art to express what it's like to be a child and the need to be motivated to be that.

In addition to being a tireless artist, she is humble and allows her art to self-promote her work. Her first job was a cartoonist as a young adult, but her passion is her children and meeting theirs and other children's needs.

"As a child, my brothers and I would color, paint and draw. We would have contests all the time. I felt it was something that I couldn't get wrong. It was something that I could always understand. School was such a trial for me, but I loved the art classes that I took in school," she recalled.

These early experiences inspired Ms. Bailey to pursue her passion for art.

"I was a teenager and I really wanted a job. As I was flipping through the paper, I saw an advertisement for an artist at a local animation studio, Perennial Pictures that is owned by Jerry Russell and Russ Harris. I met a lady there who gave me an animation cell they were working on and she asked me to paint it. After I finished it, she showed it to the owners and they hired me as an ink and paint artist. I was the only African American artist working there. O Rats and O Christmas Tree were some of the projects that aired on the Cartoon Network that I worked on from 1992 through 1993," Ms. Bailey said. During this time, Perennial Pictures did not use computer animation, but, instead created cartoon illustrations by hand. After leaving Perennial Pictures, she continued her education.

"I went to Job Corps in Grand Rapids, Michigan to get my GED and did some Certified Nursing Assistant work, but always wanted to do something with art and healthcare. I worked with a lot of children that had challenges. I learned that my son was autistic and I put my art aside for a while. We worked on sign language at Riley Children's Hospital with him. Underneath the surface, art was something that I always wanted to get back to. People would ask me to create murals, tabletops and mosaics for them. I would go to people's houses and teach art programs to their kids. I also taught seniors how to create ceramics in senior communities. I came across belly casting when I was pregnant with my second son. My father was a big supporter of my art and always encouraged me to continue with it," she noted. She also has art birthday parties for children.

"I kept working with troubled kids through the Children's Bureau, Troubled Youth, Resolute and Damar Services. My daughter is a role model to my sons and they support me as I've done artwork for their rooms. My daughter and younger son enjoy art. It's kind of like a safe place for him when he's not in school," Ms. Bailey mentioned. "I do belly casting for pregnant mothers and different kinds of motivational artwork for kids. I have two kids with disabilities that are 12 and 15 years old and am really familiar with disabilities that children face. Art has always been my life and calling. I currently work with children with challenges and abilities during the third shift at Lutheran Child and Family Services. I love working with parents, moms and kids. I have a love for art and express myself through it. I see that it helps kids that can't communicate - whatever you do is what you feel," she added.

"A friend got my website going recently, www.thebelly-button.com. I would love to do belly casting during the summer and making frames for children for all occasions. I create frames that contain a picture or mirror," Ms. Bailey described.

She makes frames for breast cancer survivors as well, which include personalized motifs for the recipient. "A lot more kids need to hear, 'You're awesome, you're great' - if we could tell our kids these things more often, it would be great. The frames say things in a more subtle way. They can be delivered to kids in schools in their classes. People tell me about the person they want to send them to, whether it is music or art," she said. Ms. Bailey designs these frames with the child's favorite things in mind, creating a personalized work of art. She makes these frames ranging in size from a 4" x 6" format to larger wall pictures for a children's room.

She believes a child needs a creative side to be a child and discover their youth. The depth of her work reflects the strength of her experience.

Describing some of the rewarding aspects of her work, Ms. Bailey said, "I like seeing people feel happy and feeling good about themselves, just knowing that you can say something that can really help somebody. It doesn't cost anything and you can change a person's whole day by saying a good thing to somebody else for the day."

Aszure Bailey's artistic gift in reinforcing positive things for kids and adults gives her work a distinct perspective.